2014 was kind of a big deal.
Cedar Rapids Ultimate increased the number of games played in town, taught Ultimate to area children, and became a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. We accomplished a lot but we’ve got our eyes set on 2015 and want it to be bigger and better. How are we going to accomplish this? We’re going to do it with your help!
There’s a lot of new services that we want to provide the Ultimate community in 2015 but there’s also plenty from 2014 that we want to carry on. We will continue to organize pick up games and tournaments that allow us to do what we all love, play Ultimate! We will focus on strengthening our community partnerships while building new ones throughout the year.
We will continue to make teaching the sport to area youth our top priority, providing young Ultimate players with discs, jerseys, instruction from certified coaches, and most of all, a chance to fall in love with Ultimate. One way we aim to improve upon teaching area youth is by taking a Youth team to play in a tournament. The experience of playing in a tournament often magnifies the joy of playing a single game of Ultimate. This is just one of the many ways we plan to bring the sport of Ultimate to Cedar Rapids.
There’s also lots of NEW services that we would love to provide but they will require the support of the the Ultimate community. Here’s a few of them:
Hosting a Club Tournament
Anyone who wants to play Club in the state of Iowa has to spend the summer traveling to Minnesota, Illinois, Wisconsin or even (gulp) Nebraska. Clearly, there’s a need and plenty to gain by hosting. An eight to 16 team tournament would bring a lot of high level Ultimate players to Eastern Iowa and provide young and aspiring Ultimate players with a picture of what competitive Ultimate looks and feels like. Hosting the tournament would also serve as a wonderful fundraiser for CRU. The proceeds from the tournament would support our youth and adult programming. This would be great, but first we need the capital to reserve fields, hire a trainer, rent port-o-potty’s, get insurance, provide amenities and more. As a non-profit our capital can only be built up through fundraisers and donations.
Expand opportunities for kids to play Ultimate in Cedar Rapids
A large part of our mission to promote the sport of Ultimate in Cedar Rapids is based on teaching more and more children about Ultimate, and giving them a chance to continue playing into adulthood. We want to provide a safe, friendly, and structured environment for kids to learn Ultimate. This begins with having trained volunteers and certified coaches. There are a few certified coaches in Cedar Rapids but we’d love to have more. (We’d also love to be able to pay for players to get certified as coaches, if we can afford to.) Along with certified coaches, having a base of reliable volunteers who understand how to work with children will allow CRU to reach kids in many ways; summer league, traveling to tournaments, day clinics, after school programs, etc.
We also want to be able to offer Ultimate to kids from any financial background. Sometimes, asking a parent to pay $20 for their child to play a summer of Ultimate is really asking too much. There’s so many kids out there that can benefit from the social skills that Ultimate has to offer (conflict-resolution, personal responsibility, etc.). We want to be able to provide these kids with scholarships that allow them to play Ultimate, be a part of a team, and have a disc to throw when they want to get out of the house. With the support of the Ultimate community in Cedar Rapids we can get kids from every neighborhood in town playing Ultimate.
Hosting more fundraising events
You may have noticed that I’ve talked a lot about how we need the support of the Ultimate community to help us grow Ultimate in the area. You make think I’m just asking you to pull out your credit card and give a donation right now. Well, I am (you can donate by clicking here) but we also will be hosting fundraisers that will serve as a chance for you to socialize with the rest of the Ultimate community.
By hosting fun events throughout the year it will help us to fund the important goals we have (funding youth league, hosting a club tournament, etc). These fun events will also be a way for you, the Ultimate players in Cedar Rapids, to socialize and support our cause. One example would be a Trivia Night, where you answer trivia questions for prizes, hang out with friends, and maybe have an adult beverage (or six). It’s a fun night out but its all to support the pick up games and hat tournaments that you love to play in.
More tournaments, more fundraising, more players, more Ultimate!
We are setting our goals high for 2015 abut it all can be achieved if we have your support. Your participation is critical to the success of CRU and there’s lots of ways that you can help out!
HOW YOU CAN HELP CEDAR RAPIDS ULTIMATE
- Play Ultimate – I know, I’m really twisting your arm here.
- Participate – Support us by participating in our fundraising events, hat tournaments, pick-up games or anything else that allows CRU to promote the sport we all love.
- Volunteer – Yes, you can be a part of CRU! We need people willing to share their love of Ultimate by being the boots on the ground.
- Share your talents – No, I’m not talking about your sweet forehand hucks. I’m talking about using the special abilities that you personally possess to help the Ultimate community. Whatever you’re talents are I’m sure we can find a way to use them!
- Be a Board Member – If you want to make a big impact on the present and future of the Ultimate community in Cedar Rapids you should consider becoming a Board Member. Board Members oversee the overall planning, strategy and implementation of the organization’s mission.
- Donate – You can always speak with your pocketbook! All gifts to CRU are tax-deductible and we are grateful for gifts of any amount. Please donate.
If you are interested in becoming a volunteer, sharing your talents, or are considering being a Board Member please email us at cedarrapidsultimate@gmail.com.
I spent a decent amount of time talking about what the organization wants to accomplish but I wanted to hear from you all, as well.
What do you want to see Cedar Rapids Ultimate accomplish?
Please share your thoughts in comments, send us an email, or message us on facebook!
Thank you for reading and for being a part of the Cedar Rapids Ultimate community.
